[Discussion] On the Gods and the World, Ch. XXI

[sdi]

Happy Wednesday! It is with some disappointment that I present this, the final chapter of On the Gods and the World, to you all! To everyone who joined in, please accept my gratitude: I've learned much, and while many of Sallustius' points still elude me, I feel as if I have a much better understanding of the material than when we began. The posts in this series will remain "open:" if anyone in the future has questions or comments about the material, please feel free to add them to any of these posts.

With that said, let us pick back up the puzzle-box for the last time, shall we?

XXI. That the Good are happy, both living and dead.

Souls that have lived in virtue are in general happy,* and when separated from the irrational part of their nature, and made clean from all matter, have communion with the gods and join them in the governing of the whole world. Yet even if none of this happiness fell to their lot, virtue itself, and the joy and glory of virtue, and the life that is subject to no grief and no master are enough to make happy those who have set themselves to live according to virtue and have achieved it.

* Gilbert Murray notes, "εὐδαιμονοῦσι ['eudaimonousi']." Literally, "possessed of a good dæmon:" blessed, fortunate.

Comments

[sdi]

You know, it's funny... given the Greek preoccupation with governance, I found it a little amusing that Sallustius would say the reward of virtue is to get to govern with the gods. But I've governed before (on a small scale, anyway), and it's hell—not exactly something I'd look forward to!

It's like how the evangelicals who raised me always said the point of going to heaven is that you get to sing hymns to God forever. That's great if you like to sing and are good at it, but I always found it rather dispiriting!

For my own part, I have no idea what we'll be doing when "made clean of all matter;" but as you say, virtue is enough!

[boccaderlupo]

Yes, the idea of governance with the gods is interesting, indeed.

I suspect the "made clean of all matter" may be a reference to the quasi-Gnostic tendency in Orphism to deprecate things material, but yes, good catch.